Short hops and hard knocks with Red Sox beat writer Ian Browne.

MVP … MVP … MVP

Those have been the chants around Fenway Park of late, and rightfully so. Dustin Pedroia has had a Tour De Force homestand, ripping the cover off the ball. He’s 13-for-22 for those of you keeping score at home.

At the same time, manager Terry Francona was slightly taken aback by the MVP questions at his news conference this morning if only because everyone was asking him the exact same questions about Kevin Youkilis two weeks ago.

The thing Pedroia has going for him is his infectious nature, and the way everyone in the clubhouse seems to feed off him. That, and the fact he obliterates the baseball.

At any rate, it’s not all about the numbers, but here they are as of Sept. 3:

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Vlad had a late push for the M.V.P. back in 2004. Chipper Jones did as well. He ate up the Mets and the M.V.P. belonged to Chipper. Pedroia is having a late surge and is in the discussion. Imagine saying too someone last April or early May and saying Pedroia would be a M.V.P. candidate in 2008. I assume that person would have seeked out a pshyche dr. for you right away. LOL. The little man Doug Flutie took Boston by storm back in the early to mid 80’s. Also Bob Cousy way back when. Now I guess it is Pedroia’s time. The best thing about Pedroia he is going to be a member of the Red Sox for a very long time, Youk as well. When your best players are also your hardest workers on the team, that makes the manager’s job a little easier I think. Not too say Zazu wasn’t a hard worker, let’s face it he had his own agenda that is very obvious. He hasn’t missed a game yet with the Dodgers. mmmm. Enough of him. Pedroia and Youk will be the faces of the Red Sox franchise for the next several years. Of course Papelbon and Ellsbury will be around for years as well. Winning and developing great talent, I like that combo!!!

I am at work, my computer is down and I’m on the common computer. I have just a second to do this in:::
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!
LET’S GO REDSOX, LET’S GO!!! CLAP CLAP CLAP!!!!
I’ll try to check in later.. see ya………..

Ellen: I thought tnix33 is Jody Foster. lol
This what you have to do. Go to mlb.com and click on “my account” on the top of right home page and then click on the “nickname preference” and change to whatever nickname you like.

OKay…. I had to change to EllenC. My full name with email address was too many characters (hell I’m too many characters!!lol) So I guess Brians will be next.. You can only have between 4-10.. Now since that situation is rectified…
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON??? Did someone not tell Dice K that he cant see the batter or the plate with his head up his….. or did they not tell him that in order to be in in the playoffs we need every game we can get??????? Danmit,,,,
OKAY REDSOX GET IT TOGETHER, GET THE BATS HOT.. OR GET READY TO PLAY GOLF… I can call and arrange tee times for all you guys!!!! Hows October 1st??? You keep playing like this and you’ll have nothing on your hands but alot of time!!!!!
BUT…
STILL…
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!
WOOOOO WOOOOO… LET’S GO REDSOX, LET’S GO!!! CLAP CLAP CLAP!!!!

I feel bad for Ellsbury today… the last time he struck out, the last 2 strike calls were at least 6 inches outside… maybe 8. The K-zone replies showed that they were NOT EVEN CLOSE to being strikes. This last time up with the bases loaded, the first pitch was not even close either.

Its the same thing almost every game, I can’t believe I’m still writing it. JUST BECAUSE THE CATCHER LINES UP OUTSIDE… AND THE PITCHER HITS THE TARGET… IT DOESN’T MEAN IT’S A STRIKE.

A pitch 6 inches low or high is hittable, but never, ever called a strike. A pitch 6-8 inches outside is unhittable, yet called a strike consistently by these clowns.

Ian, I’m begging you to explain why this is a strike…. Please answer. I can’t bear to watch these clowns ruin games the way they do over and over again.

Another make-up call by the umps. These guys are truly clueless. I think maybe Francona doesn’t argue enough. It was completly obvious that swing call against Lowrie was a make-up from the Huff call at third.

That was a big play by Cora in the eighth, and he got the out, but in most cases, that’s not very smart baseball. It took a perfect throw, a perfect tag, a slow runner and a questionable call to get the out. I do think Huff was out, but I’m not sure the umpire is sure because he certainly couldn’t see the tag from where he was.

Strike zone continues to plague Ellsbury. I’ve never seen one hitter get so many outside pitches called against him. He’s got to learn to be able to foul off those pitches if these idiots are going to continue to call them strikes.

For those interested I was looking at the Sox contracts today and we only have 9 players under contract for next year and a ton arbitration eligible. Going to be interesting what Theo does not only with FAs (namely Wake and Tek) but with contracts for Youk, Paps, Lester, etc.

OKAY >>>> LETS GET SOME BIG BATS OUT!!!!! Gotta get hits gotta get runs!!!!! LETS GO REDSOX!!!!!!!
DO WE WANT THE PLAYOFFS????????? YOU BETCHYOUR ASP WE DO!!!!!!! WATCH OUT DEVILRAYS DEVILRAYS DEVILRAYS, HERE COME THE REDSOX AND WE’RE NOT GOING TO BE NICE ABOUT IT!!!!!

Wow!!! What a great win for the Sox! The tide is turning. The devilrays better start to worry, lol. I feel bad for Miller, it’s his second game in the bigs and he throws the ball into left field. His coach was with him going into the clubhouse. But I’m happy for the Sox! Yahoooo!!!

Hey Arnie, with regard to Miller… How many of our pitchers have had “Baptism by Fire????” thats what that kid got… He’ll get over it!!
And thanks for calling me back!!!! I noticed that the tide started turning right after “ellen” came back and I posted my rant!!!

A sweep of Baltimore and 25 games over .500 by September 3rd. At 82-57, 23 more games to play. If the Sox can go 14-9, (with 14 home games left[!]) they get to 30 games over .500. If they can just take 2 of 3 from Texas this wee-end, they’ll only need to finish 12-8, with 14 home games remaining (of 20 at that point).

Nice comeback tonight. So many times I look at the horrible bullpens out there and say… Geez, we really should be able to come back against these losers… Nice to see it happen once in a while! We’re in a no-lose situation tonight as well… either we gain another half game on the Rays or the Yanks get another nail in their coffin. Niiiice!

I think everyone will agree this was an ugly game. Dice-K was terrible, Crisp makes a little league error and in general the Sox got very lucky. However — in the past it would have been an ugly game and they would have lost the ballgame so here are the 2008 Red Sox. Cheers to Masterson for once again saving the Sox tails.
Lowrie should be moved up the lineup. The pressure of batting in the top of the order is cooling him off. Ellsbury should be batting ninth as well. The pressure of leading off is cooling him off. Dice-K needs to stop nibbling corners and work more like Byrd. His pitch count is out of control. He burns through pitches like the U.S. government burns through money.
Finally watch out for the new romantic comedy starring Garry, Julio Lugo and Drew Barrymore. Two wacky friends compete for the same girlfriend. Garry plays Steve Austin a man who works for the government saving the world while Lugo plays Walter Smith who works at the Quickie Mart selling ten day old hot dogs and squid left over from last years government lunch banquets. Who will Drew Barrymore pick? Find out in “You’ve got to be kidding”

007,
The Yankees. Still barely breathing. I’d love to go to the Stadium for the rays last visit, just to heckle Maddon and announce my “Cervelli Curse.” Francisco Cervelli is the Yank’s catcher involved in a collision with a Ray in Spring Training that broke his wrist.

Barely breathing are the Yankees? Sorry Kramer, Kate Smith sang on them after the Sox beat them down a week ago tonight. I think it is time for you too focus on the Phillies. Just my opinion of course. I like your optimism but………

I am still concerned about the SOX when they encounter good pitching… can they beat a hot pitcher or just capitalize on average to poor pitching, much like the Yanks? Six innings with few hits and no runs against two Orioles bullpen pitchers???

It would be nice to see them run into some pretty decent pitching and still pull out some Ws — haven’t seen much of that this year. You could argue that no team does, but past Sox times I think did more often than this team does. Seems like when we run into good pitching we are under 500 for sure.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the W very much. But what is going to keep us above 500 in the post season? Lucky breaks or the ability to beat good pitching?

As ugly as some of our BrowniePointers think this win was.. it was, in fact. a HUGE win…. how many times this season have all of us seen the Sox go into the 9th down 2,3,4 runs or more and just leave runners on base and not capitalize on opportunities. This win showed a team effort and a spirit that has been sorely lacking all season…. So I dont care how it happened… It happened.. and it happened because this game was a TEAM EFFORT, as the past several W’s have been. Last week the bottom of the order was getting it done. Tek started hitting.. Jason Bay comes in and is 25 for 29… Everybody is getting up off their respective butts and doing it when it counts.. My Dad used to tell me… “NEVER LOOK A GIFT “W” IN THE MOUTH..” Regardless of how this became our win, it is OUR W ON THE BOARD!!!!
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!
Just a little nothing here: At the beginning of the season, I chose my computer wallpaper and my screen saver. My wallpaper is Mikey Lowell sitting on the practice field before one of last seasons WS games. My screensaver is a scroll thats reads “….Says the REDSOX FAN…. I DO BELIEVE!!!!” I put that on there 3 days before the beginning of the regular season.. I’d say it is STILL TRUE!!!

I’ll be watching and rooting for the Yankees tonight. Absolutely no pressure on the Yankees and that is a good thing. T.B. is feeling the heat. Pavano looking sharp, of course no pressure and Pavano is doing well. T.B. hits the road in Tor. and Halladay should be on the hill for 1 one of those 3 games.

I thought Boston had their biggest win of the year in Toronto. The final game of the series. I also think today’s game was a big win as well. Let’s hope Beckett is back and back big on Friday. If Beckett is back, look out!!

8-3 Yankees on top!! I yelled at AScrod and hit hit a HR!!! Thank you pink lip gloss man!! I hope it holds up in the botton of the 9th… God and RedSox Gods, please forgive me for rooting for those other players!!

Night Nationers!!! Good day all the way around.. A day off tomorrow for the boys.. Some time to recharge the batteries. We (so far) have Mr Joshua back for the Texas series..

I want to ask all of you to BELIEVE like I do.. And keep up the DEVILRAYS,DEVILRAYS,DEVILRAYS chant with me.. I know my superstitions might seem silly to alot of you.. But.. someone look back and tell me when things started to turn in the past 3 weeks…
I know that you all LOVE theSox like I do.. So lets ALL get the IDO BELIEVE FEVER!!!!! WEDO BELIEVE, WEDO BELIEVE, WEDO, WEDO, WEDO, WEDO BELIEVE!!!!!!!

Ray lose and Twins lose, so this is another productive day for the Sox. The Sox needed to win this game and they took advantage of a Baltimore staff that has trouble throwing strikes. I turned the game on in the 7th and the Sox were trailing 4-0. I looked at the box score and saw Dice-K was back to his typical self. This time though, it appears those walks were a little costly. Kotsay had a clutch hit, Masterson had a great outing, Pedroia was Pedroia, Ellsbury made a good catch to rob Huff, Lopez looked pretty good, and Cora made a heads up play that likely saved the game. I actually thought it was a pretty good win. The real break they got was on the Crisp bunt which hit a rock and stayed fair.

Miller’s play was very much like Cora’s and like Cora, he made the wrong baseball decision. It would have taken a perfect throw to get Cora at third. He should have taken the out at first.

It’s gut check time for the Rays. They have probably their toughest road trip of the year after tomorrow’s game with the Yankees. They head to Toronto, Boston and New York and come home to see Boston again. For both the Rays and the Sox, it will be put up or shut up time. The Sox need to take a “real attitude” to Texas. If the Sox could pick up another game over the weekend, they’ll be all set up to take control when they return home. The opportunity is there. They just need to take care of business.

garry: I don’y know if you read my earlier post, but what I said was.. LOOK OUT DEVILRAYS… DO YOU SEE THAT IN YOUR REARVIEW MIRROR?? WELL IT IS THE BOSTON REDSOX.. WE’RE COMING AFTER YOU. IT’S NOT GOING TO BE PRETTY!!! LOOK OUT!!!!

Hey Trixie, do you mind if I call you Trixie now that your secret is out? I did read your post. I’ll bet when you’re home watching the Sox games, you put on a little Red Sox cheerleading skirt and sweater, complete with white sneakers, knee sox (red of course) and pom poms. I think you have to quit hiding your enthusiasm in your posts. Just let it all out…… it’s OK! LOL!

If nothing else, we have a good time around here.

I watched the end of the Rays/Yankees game tonight and I just loved listening to Joe Migrane and Statts whine and cry. You’d think their whole world was coming to an end. I love the way they end the telecast when the Rays lose…… Staats always says, “I hope you enjoyed the telecast, if not the outcome of the game.” LOL! I love it. I might be temepted to watch some of the Rays telecasts if it weren’t for the horrible broadcast team. I just can’t stand them, and even if I turn down the sound, I know they are lurking there, saying stupid and ignorant things so I just can’t watch it.

Now I’m watching the Dodger/Padres. What a horrible outfielder Zazu is. Fenway’s tiny left field protected his very inadequate defensive a-s-s, but he looks lost out there in Chavez Ravine. If a fly ball isn’t hit right at him, it’s two bases, and of course, he doesn’t hustle a lick.

Over the next week, we’ll find out what the Rays are made of–A trio of 3-game series vs. the Jays, the Sox and the Yankees. I have a feeling of change in the fall air…and it’s got nothing to do with politics!

Is anyone else a little unnerved by the stirrings of the Yankees the past couple of days? I guess the older you are, the more memories you have of previous times they were declared dead, prematurely. These guys are like the Terminator…never quite out of it. They can’t come back now…can they?

One last note. Americans should be a little po’ed at us Canadians. We just upstaged your little November election. Looks like we’ll be going to the polls in October. Nyahh nyahh.

A-Rod’s H.R. last night was clearly a H.R. Listening to Staats and Migrane, you would think it was foul by a mile. They have their field reporter ( Todd Kalas ) interview some fans out in the outfield and Kalas says most agree it was foul. Even a Yankee fan. Fans in the outfield in the 9th inning, safe too say they were seeing 3 baseballs as they looked up. LOL!! I didn’t enjoy the telecast but the outcome was just GREAT!!! Staats and Migrane were crying about the pitch before the H.R. They both thought it was clearly a strike. I think that pitch could have gone either way. Some home plate umpires say strike and others don’t. Next pitch A-Rod smokes it!! Staats and Migrane said they should review the strike thrown by Percival. Those two are total stooges!! Yanks go for the sweep!!! I believe in the pinstripes!! Yes I do.

The wc team will either be the Red Sox or the Rays. The Minn and CWS have to fight for the division title to get into the playoffs. The Sox are like the surging Yanks in 2007. At the same time last year, the Yanks were leading in the wc and 7 games behind the division leading Red Sox and finished 2 games out. The Sox are just 3 games behind the Rays.

Sometimes it takes a good team a little bit of luck to win a ball game. Cora tossed the ball to Jed Lowrie at third who tagged Huff for the first out. Francona called the play a game saver. What a disastrous inning might turn out to be if Huff was safe or Cora threw the ball away like Miller did. Coco’s bunt seemed to turn foul and stayed fair and Miller misguided errant throw to the third base.

Dgneubert: I agree the Sox always have problem scoring facing decent pitching in the regular season. Bur when it comes September and October, the Sox will find a way to beat the tough pitchers. The Sox hit Sabbathia and Carmona hard in the ALCS and not in the regular season.

Ronkelly: No doubt the Yanks are a competitive team. Last year the Yanks were leading in the wc and had only one team to catch for the division title. This year the Yanks are 10 out of the first place and 7 out of the wc. It would take a colossal collapse on the part of the Rays and the Sox for the miracle to happen, not to mention the rotation of Pavano, Ponson, and Rasner. In short, the Yanks are mathematically alive but realistically dead. The Yanks’ hope of gaining 1 game each week and sweep the Sox at Fenway is simply a mirage.

If the Yanks were realisitically in the race and just beat the Rays 2 games in a row, how exited the Yankees fans would be! I didn’t see it. The Yankees fans are clinging to a glimmer of hope at best.
There is sign that the Rays starting to wilt. What about the Cubs who are on a 5 game losing streak and just swept by the Astros. I am hoping for the Red Sox, Cubs or Mets WS.

ronkelly, it wouldn’t take much to upstage our election in November. What we have to choose from is like choosing between the Yankees and the Rays. The Yankees are a great team with great history, but they are too old with too little, too late. The Rays are young, at the front, and hav no idea what they’re doing. I think that pretty much describes McCain and Obama, don’t you? In either case, it’s a sad state of affairs for our great nation that we are relegated to choosing between these two people.

It’s tough to chastise the Sox for not hitting good pitching. That’s why it’s called good pitching and most teams have trouble hitting it. The Sox come out and pound the Orioles for 14 runs, and for seven innings the next day they can’t hit a beachball with a Wham-O bat. Why is that? Who can explain why Dustin Pedroia is doing what he’s doing right now. He’d be the first to tell you that while he’s hitting the ball well, there have been some hits on bad swings and some seeing eye hits. But when he had a chance to win the game against Chicago the other night, he just misses a fat pitch and pops it up. If he gets another quarter inch of that ball, it’s over the monster seats. When you face good pitching, you need good pitching and you hope yours is better than theirs …… and that’s why pitching wins championships.

Brian, call the waaaaambulence for Staats and Migrane. They whine and moan about every close call that doesn’t go the Rays’ way. I thought the pitch prior to the home run was at least a foot inside! LOL!

Lineup: since we have a pennant race, all of you are chipping in and helping out the Red Sox win the game.

LF – dbenjamin— is really having a great time with Ellsbury. He’s working on improving his confidence. “What Jacobe needs is to remove his fear and we’re doing that with sky diving from the space shuttle.” Jacobe, who tried it once under gunpoint, and who is now in the home for the mentally insane, was unavailable for comment.
CF – redsoxfan015 – is really excited about being in the outfield. He’s training Coco Crisp about the how to be the best hitter in the league. “What Coco needs is to forget about switch hitting and take my exact advice about hitting. I read this book called how to be a lumberjack. It’s all the same idea. “Coco who just opened up a lumber company and retired from the game got the idea.
RF – Arnie – Arnie will be counseling Drew with his own rehab program – kitchen duty. The duty will include lifting heavy boxes and huge slabs of meat. Drew – who is currently undergoing massive back surgery says the next time he sees Arnie will be his last – whatever that means!
3B – jimmaynard3 – Jim is really having fun with Mike Lowell. They are partying, getting drunk, going on food binges and causing general mayhem. Jim says he’s never seen Mikey happier. Mikey who plans to retire from baseball and party the rest of his life says he owes it all to Jim – thanks a lot Jim!
SS – chman712 – will be giving advice to Julio Lugo. Unfortunately Lugo wanted to know what a dungeon, stretch wrack and a maniacal laughing chman712 who screams every time he turns the crank on Lugo has anything to do with being a better shortstop.
2b – Ellen – Ellen will be giving Pedroia advice tonight. She started with shaving his beard and then giving him full body massages before hot tub time and all you can eat meals. Dustin – who is now twenty pounds heavier and sore from the massage therapy and acupuncture says this probably wasn’t a good way to prepare for the pennant especially with all those “I do believe screams in my ears” That of course is the past now. Since Sean Casey arrived, Dustin has been water boy and pool cleaner. “Do you think it’s easy for me, “said a tear filled Dustin, “having to compete with Sean. It’s not easy being short. Dammit I have feelings too!”
1B – cfarnham04 – Is having a lot of fun teaching Youk to be a better hitter. He’s offering advice and council and says the black eye that Youk gave him from a thrown batting helmet or the clavical fracture from the baseball bat or the contusion from the gateraid bottle or the broken foot from the hammer will not deter him from getting as far away from Youk as possible.
C – Jody Foster – While you guys are offering advice, Jody will be giving me great advice about how to get better sleep and better breakfasts in the morning. Talk to you later.
P – Garry – Garry will be training Manny Delcarman in confidence. He’s assured that constant and utter beratement will spring him back to life. Manny, last seen crying into a bucket doesn’t seem to be following that advice. Of course wearing a “Johnny Damon Rocks” T-Shirt with a hat that says “A-Rod is my hero” did little to inspire Manny nor did it prevent that hospital trip later that evening.
P – Pangelotti – will be giving Dice-K advice about hitting that strike zone. It’s been his dream to scream and curse him day after day after day. Dice-K who doesn’t speak a word of English had Pangelotti committed last week. Talk to you soon.
P – Rayman – Rayman’s dream is to get Papelbon back on track but after doing some dear hunting, fishing, canoeing and tennis, he decided it was more fun to just hang out. “Nothing like a bud light and a fishing pole I say” Papelbon couldn’t agree more and says they really both enjoy watching “Sense and Sensibility” before bar hopping later in the evening.
P — 007 chow – is working with Mike Timlin to get him out there every night pitching like a pro. Timlin isn’t getting the Tornado ball but does get the dislocated shoulder from trying to throw the pitch. Way to go 007chow!
Umpires – Julio Lugo who’s two dislocated shoulders and dislocated hip make him unable to play for a bit of time.

Garry,
You are right….the pitch prior was not even close. I also thought that the home run was clearly a fair ball hit by A-Rod last night. They just wanted to play with the new toy. A-Rod did not do a very good job of “selling” it though.

Now..September and October calls for defense, pitching and some timely hitting. You can go through streaks of that during the year and survive but you have to do it consistently during the last 7 weeks or so to have a chance.
The American league East has some strong spoilers too so hang on to your seats. Who is a stronger spoiler than the Yankees? It’s beginning to look like that may be their role this year and if they can’t be in the October games…..there is no team they’d rather knock out than the Red Sox. There’s a good possibility that by the time they get a chance to do that the Sox will have taken care of business and made that impossible. GO SOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dave: BRAVO, BRAVO, ENCORE ENCORE!!!! Fabulous line up!!! But Neither Petey or Sean are being neglected I assure you…. I am an EQUAL opportunity employer!!!
Garry: I like the name Trixie, but I hate to burst your bubble.. it said TNIX, though I would like to know who told you about my red knee highs and pom poms???

Those Ray fans are sadly lacking in baseball knowledge. Their players fail to make a few difficult plays and are booed lustily. And did you see the look on the player’s faces when they run into a little adversity? Time for them to slide back into second place!

Well…..being it’s an off-day it makes it for a dangerous day for me. What is the feasability of…..

The Sox deal Lowell, Lugo, DelCarmen(Even though he shows signs of waking up) and free up some $$$$$$$ and then sign Texiera and move Youkalis back to 3rd. They don’t have to pay ZAZU’s salary next year right? More $$$$ in the Sox coffer. So the Line-up (not batting order) is:
1B Texiera
2B Pedroia
SS Lowrie
3B Youkalis
C Varitek
LF Bay
CF Ellsbury
RF Drew (Crisp when Drew goes down if Crisp is still there)
DH Papi

Like I said….off days and me getting bored are dangerous. A guy can dream right Trixie???????

O.K. Robert — updated to include you. Look for yourself in the lineup.

Lineup:
LF – dbenjamin— is really having a great time with Ellsbury. He’s working on improving his confidence. “What Jacobe needs is to remove his fear and we’re doing that with sky diving from the space shuttle.” Jacobe, who tried it once under gunpoint, and who is now in the home for the mentally insane, was unavailable for comment.
CF – redsoxfan015 – is really excited about being in the outfield. He’s training Coco Crisp about the how to be the best hitter in the league. “What Coco needs is to forget about switch hitting and take my exact advice about hitting. I read this book called how to be a lumberjack. It’s all the same idea. “Coco who just opened up a lumber company and retired from the game got the idea.
RF – Arnie – Arnie will be counseling Drew with his own rehab program – kitchen duty. The duty will include lifting heavy boxes and huge slabs of meat. Drew – who is currently undergoing massive back surgery says the next time he sees Arnie will be his last – whatever that means!
3B – jimmaynard3 – Jim is really having fun with Mike Lowell. They are partying, getting drunk, going on food binges and causing general mayhem. Jim says he’s never seen Mikey happier. Mikey who plans to retire from baseball and party the rest of his life says he owes it all to Jim – thanks a lot Jim!
SS – chman712 – will be giving advice to Julio Lugo. Unfortunately Lugo wanted to know what a dungeon, stretch wrack and a maniacal laughing chman712 who screams every time he turns the crank on Lugo has anything to do with being a better shortstop.
2b – Ellen – Ellen will be giving Pedroia advice tonight. She started with shaving his beard and then giving him full body massages before hot tub time and all you can eat meals. Dustin – who is now twenty pounds heavier and sore from the massage therapy and acupuncture says this probably wasn’t a good way to prepare for the pennant especially with all those “I do believe screams in my ears” That of course is the past now. Since Sean Casey arrived, Dustin has been water boy and pool cleaner. “Do you think it’s easy for me, “said a tear filled Dustin, “having to compete with Sean. It’s not easy being short. Dammit I have feelings too!”
1B – cfarnham04 – Is having a lot of fun teaching Youk to be a better hitter. He’s offering advice and council and says the black eye that Youk gave him from a thrown batting helmet or the clavical fracture from the baseball bat or the contusion from the gateraid bottle or the broken foot from the hammer will not deter him from getting as far away from Youk as possible.
C – Jody Foster – While you guys are offering advice, Jody will be giving me great advice about how to get better sleep and better breakfasts in the morning. Jody is the best but unfortunately we never get to sleep at night. Oh the life is tough. Talk to you later.
P – Garry – Garry will be training Manny Delcarman in confidence. He’s assured that constant and utter beratement will spring him back to life. Manny, last seen crying into a bucket doesn’t seem to be following that advice. Of course wearing a “Johnny Damon Rocks” T-Shirt with a hat that says “A-Rod is my hero” did little to inspire Manny D. nor did it prevent that hospital trip later that evening.
P – Pangelotti – will be giving Dice-K advice about hitting that strike zone. It’s been his dream to scream and curse him day after day after day. Dice-K who doesn’t speak a word of English had Pangelotti committed last week. Talk to you soon.
P – Rayman – Rayman’s dream is to get Papelbon back on track but after doing some dear hunting, fishing, canoeing and tennis, he decided it was more fun to just hang out. “Nothing like a bud light and a fishing pole I say” Papelbon couldn’t agree more and says they really both enjoy watching “Sense and Sensibility” before bar hopping later in the evening.
P — 007 chow – is working with Mike Timlin to get him out there every night pitching like a pro. Timlin isn’t getting the Tornado ball but does get the dislocated shoulder from trying to throw the pitch. Way to go 007chow!
Bench Coach – RobertGKramer – Kramer is new to the lineup but realized those bench guys are getting really bored so he installed XBOX porn video games for all the players. That produced a problem since now everyone wants to be benched in the game. Robert was forced to put in “Rosanne Superhero” and that spirit of being benched died down within minutes.

Umpires – Julio Lugo who’s two dislocated shoulders and dislocated hip make him unable to play for a bit of time.

If it’s up to me, deal! Mark Teixeira is 6 years younger than Lowell and hits for power from both sides. He has 29 HRs and 106 RBIs thus far. I couldn’t care less for Lugo and Delcarman. Deal!
Back to reality, should the Rays loses tonight, it will be an interesting weekend. The Rays will face Doc Halliday, Shaun Marcum, and Dave Purcey in Toronto. Game 1 advantage Jays, Game 2 is a toss up, and Game 3 advantage Rays. What seems to be improbable a week ago may become a distinct possibility for the Sox.

The pitching for the Rays tonite and thru the Toronto series is favorable to the Rays (including the Halladay matchup which is the only matchup I think is even, the rest all favor the Rays).

Rays win tonite. Then.. we pick up one more game during the Toronto series (if we sweep the Rangers) — so the best possible standing, entering the home stand against the Rays, I suspect is down 2.5 games — the rest of the math is easy for the 3 games at home against the Rays.

Taravez is doing pretty well with Atlanta but they limit him to one inning of relief and no more.
Gagne is doing mediocre with the Brewers — what a surprise. He’s either on fire or explodes like a volcano giving up 3 – 4 runs in an inning.
Hansen is struggling with the Pirates and giving up a lot of runs.
Moss is doing OK with the Pirates. Nothing outstanding but he’s holding his own.
Kason Gabbard is continuing to battle injuries and is out for the season with a bone spur. Bummer.
Brian Corey is not listed with the Padres. I wonder what happened to him.

Great line up Dave! Is there a game today? What’s going on? Who am I and why am I here? Sorry, JD Drew knocked me unconscious with a skillet and I feel really dizzy! He ran out into the parking lot yelling something about Lugo being next.

Well, if the Yankees keep this up tonight, we’ll be at 3 1/2 games out of 1st… Theyre losing 4-0 right now… and its EARLY, but that could go the other way too!! Anyway,
Who lives here on the east coast of Florida, is that Garry??
Looks like we are in for one HELLUVA storm. Ike was a category 4, is down to a 3 right now but could intensify… and the track that its on right now puts it kicking Fort Lauderdale right in the hiney late Tuesday… I usually dont get nervous about these things, but I have a terrible feeling about this. To all of you who do pray… please add South Florida (and Trixie here) to your nightly conversation with the Big Guy!!

Ellen it was Dark Vador and Lugo but now it’s Drew and Lugo. I don’t know what the attraction is but when you add Rosanne to the mix you get a wild night of fun that only the mentally warped will want to participate in. Lugo and Rosanne and Drew are a perfect threesome.

Ellen,
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
What the hell is going on down there??????? One minute you are bragging about how great it is down there and the next minute you are clearing out the supermarkets and Home Depots. That reminds me of half the places I’ve lived over the years from New England to Korea!!!!!!! I’ll stay here in Nevada!!!!

Second, I think I know why you and Garry had name changes on this blog. You two have been on the longest and it’s time for a change!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now go run for the hills before all hell breaks loose down there!!!!!!! Ha Ha….told you I was dangerous on non-game nights.

ronkelly: Twins are just pretenders. Never pose any real threat to the Sox for the wc. Twins have to win the divison to make the playoffs and will be knocked out in the first round anyway. Why bother, just pack up and play golf in October.

Dave: Did you make Robert Kramer the bench coach? I suggest one added duty for him. Find out exactly how tall is the little big man, Pedroia. DP barely measures to the shoulder of Big Papi. If Pedroia is 5’9″, I am 6′ tall. lol

Even Pedroia came out and said that he is only 5’6″.. He said he has told the “info” people this and they continue to list him at 5’9″. Said he even had this problem at ASU…. He may tape out at 5’6″ but he plays like he’s 10 feet tall!

Lineup: This was inspired by all the home improvement projects I’ve been doing lately. Fortunately I didn’t use any of the ideas you guys came up with in this lineup.

LF – dbenjamin— dbenjamin decided to do a favor and clean out Jacobe’s gutters on his new home. “It was easy really. Most people do it the hard way but I believe in speed – just like Jacobe. I came up with a great idea. You simply pour about five gallons of gasoline or lighter fluid in the gutters. It will help break down the leaves and twigs. Then light it (be sure to wear gloves just in case of flash burn). Since the gutters are next to the roof there is no danger of the house catching on fire. Unfortunately Jacobe’s house did burn down later in an unrelated explosion. “
CF – redsoxfan015 – is really excited about being in the outfield. As a special welcome to Jason Bay he decided to wash all his windows. “The secret is the right solution. Knowing that windows are made of glass I decided on a special concoction. The spray will break down the dirt particulates and leave you with an amazing shine. As I found out later, be sure to use a power washer on this solution since it has a tendency to break down everything around it. Oh ya the formula – pure battery acid. As a footnote, be sure to use safety glasses. Ah where’s my seeing eye dog! “
RF – Arnie – Arnie decided to welcome J.D. Drew’s replacement Mark Kotsay by cooking him a great meal. “I didn’t want to end up like Redsoxfan015 or dbenjamin with their self-destructive acts so I made him a cream cheese pie with a delicious yogurt custard fruit cake. Hey I should have been more careful but then Garry called me on the phone and we got to talking. It was a warm day and Mark came by – it’s not my fault he got food poisoning. It was only in the hot sun for six hours. I would have brought him to the hospital but then chman712 and I got into the entire Texeira deal. Of course when he stopped breathing I started to get involved but then Beckett gave up that stupid triple and I had to comment on that one. This is all Ellen’s fault anyway because then we had to talk about Migrane again and then…”
3B – jimmaynard3 – Jim decided Mike Lowell was feeling depressed and he decided to do something safe – paint Mike’s house. “I’m an old fashioned guy. I got some great old Benjamin Moore exterior paint and added a ton of lead powder to it. I’m sick to death of those liberal environmentalists who tell me how to do my job. I then sprayed the entire house with the stuff. Every wall I sprayed I thought of those freako environmentalists and I just decided to shove it to them. Freako liberals !!!! Ya show them! I got so angry I poured lead dust into my beer before spraying it all over myself – and ya no what – no damage liberatos. Then I made myself a lead cocktail and washed with lead soap before before I shampooed with lead shampoo – lefty freakos – I’ll show you. The more lead I drank up more mind get clearerer. I show em freako luko ducko deare… (We’re all rooting for your recovery from the I.C.U. from severe lead poisoning Jim)
SS – chman712 – is so excited about Julio Lugo that he decided to mow his lawn. “Then I realized that I could so much more. With so many animals on the endangered list and Lugo having two acres, I decided to fence it all in and protect them. Rare white Tigers with the beautiful but endangered Polar Bears and many of the deadly poisonous Cobras and tarantulas. There were also scorpions, boa constrictors all waiting to harmonize with the world. Lugo will really enjoy his stay in my zoo of doom. I know it because I tested it out on Migrane)
2b – Ellen –1B – cfarnham04 – Ellen is more than happy to hang out with Dustin Pedroia and just do nothing insane. She doesn’t want to paint the walls with lead or leave food out in the sun or set fire to gutters. She just wants to hang out with Jason Bay. That’s right. Helen doesn’t want to do anything crazy. She just wants to hang out with Sean Casey. No animal farms at all. She just wants to hang out with Jason Varitek. Yup no crazy ideas. She just wants to hang out with youk. No…no crazy inventions – just give her a night with Mike Lowell. That’s Ellen.
C – Jody Foster – I’m so hooked on Jody right now that I’ll get back to you Gary when we’ve returned from Australia on our year long trek.
P – Garry – Garry is once again working for Manny Delcarman installing a new tile floor in his bedroom. “The old Italian hand made tile was fine but a jackhammer took care of that waste of money. I know baseball and I’m a lawyer so what’s the big deal about a tiled floor. For me it’s a new floor and it’s easy to do. Just repair whatever minor holes I created with the jackhammer with some plywood and nail them in place. (I used the 4 * 8 sheets and strung them together for the larger holes.) Next glue the tile to the floor. I used a hot glue gun but as the tiles cracked and I just used a wheelbarrow and a jack hammer to bust up the tiles for a collage. Once all the tiles was smashed up I mixed it with concrete and poured the floor. After seeing Manny’s face I did one final step in calling a professional tiller and begged but now it just looks great. BosoxBrian – I won’t be doing any traveling lately. I have a $10,000 tiling bill to pay off!”
P – Pangelotti – just decided to pitch today. No home improvement projects but when Dice-K said buff his car “I couldn’t resist. I had my 12,000 RPM Maika grinder and just attached my shirt to the grinding pad with hot glue. This works great if you realize one factor – have a 24 hour Maco paint shop nearby for an emergency paint job. “
P – Rayman – Rayman’s dream is to get Papelbon back on track and he started by doing something foolproof. Well he got his chance. He put in a nightlight. “After hearing the horror stories I decided to do something simple. Unfortunately the bulb burned out because I got a cheap one and Papelbon is now nursing a broken jaw from the fall. I just can’t do anything right.”
007chow! – I installed the ultimate burglar proof system in Tim Wakefield’s house. Any burglar who breaks in will get an ear piercing 50,000 db sound wave that’s sure to send the burglars to the ground. As I learned it also shatters windows, walls, explodes natural gas tanks as well as causing permanent hearing damage. Tim was pretty understanding guy though but I couldn’t hear a thing he was saying but if I didn’t know better I’d swear he was screaming at me but if that were true I would have heard it. Hey…does anyone know why it’s so quiet around here lately?”

BosoxBrian – P – Brian isn’t like the rest of us. He decided on something safe so he decided to just talk baseball to Big Papi…but when David cried on his shoulders he decided to do something nice to cheer him up “so I gave him a new wood floor. I ripped up all that priceless Japanese custom carpeting and put in a new wood floor. It was easier than I thought it would be. You just put the pieces together and glue them in place with liquid nails. The hard part is the corners but I just filled in the gaps with more caulk. I then painted the caulk with some leftover lead paint. I figured it wouldn’t be a problem. Then I left town right away when David decided that a baseball bat could be used for something more than hitting a baseball.
Bench Coach – RobertGKramer – “I don’t.know what’s happened to the team. Everyone is reporting some sort of home loss and is not showing up for the game. Stupid Boston contractors. Sounds like Rayman, Pangelotti, Gary, BoSoxBrian and others need to get together and fix these problems before it gets out of hand. “

Umpires – Julio Lugo will be playing after recovering from tiger attacks, snake bites and scorpion venum.

Lineup:
LF – dbenjamin— dbenjamin decided to do a favor and clean out Jacobe’s gutters on his new home. “It was easy really. Most people do it the hard way but I believe in speed – just like Jacobe. I came up with a great idea. You simply pour about five gallons of gasoline or lighter fluid in the gutters. It will help break down the leaves and twigs. Then light it (be sure to wear gloves just in case of flash burn). Since the gutters are next to the roof there is no danger of the house catching on fire. Unfortunately Jacobe’s house did burn down later in an unrelated explosion. “
CF – redsoxfan015 – is really excited about being in the outfield. As a special welcome to Jason Bay he decided to wash all his windows. “The secret is the right solution. Knowing that windows are made of glass I decided on a special concoction. The spray will break down the dirt particulates and leave you with an amazing shine. As I found out later, be sure to use a power washer on this solution since it has a tendency to break down everything around it. Oh ya the formula – pure battery acid. As a footnote, be sure to use safety glasses. Ah where’s my seeing eye dog! “
RF – Arnie – Arnie decided to welcome J.D. Drew’s replacement Mark Kotsay by cooking him a great meal. “I didn’t want to end up like Redsoxfan015 or dbenjamin with their self-destructive acts so I made him a cream cheese pie with a delicious yogurt custard fruit cake. Hey I should have been more careful but then Garry called me on the phone and we got to talking. It was a warm day and Mark came by – it’s not my fault he got food poisoning. It was only in the hot sun for six hours. I would have brought him to the hospital but then chman712 and I got into the entire Texeira deal. Of course when he stopped breathing I started to get involved but then Beckett gave up that stupid triple and I had to comment on that one. This is all Ellen’s fault anyway because then we had to talk about Migrane again and then…”
3B – jimmaynard3 – Jim decided Mike Lowell was feeling depressed and he decided to do something safe – paint Mike’s house. “I’m an old fashioned guy. I got some great old Benjamin Moore exterior paint and added a ton of lead powder to it. I’m sick to death of those liberal environmentalists who tell me how to do my job. I then sprayed the entire house with the stuff. Every wall I sprayed I thought of those freako environmentalists and I just decided to shove it to them. Freako liberals !!!! Ya show them! I got so angry I poured lead dust into my beer before spraying it all over myself – and ya no what – no damage liberatos. Then I made myself a lead cocktail and washed with lead soap before before I shampooed with lead shampoo – lefty freakos – I’ll show you. The more lead I drank up more mind get clearerer. I show em freako luko ducko deare… (We’re all rooting for your recovery from the I.C.U. from severe lead poisoning Jim)
SS – chman712 – is so excited about Julio Lugo that he decided to mow his lawn. “Then I realized that I could so much more. With so many animals on the endangered list and Lugo having two acres, I decided to fence it all in and protect them. Rare white Tigers with the beautiful but endangered Polar Bears and many of the deadly poisonous Cobras and tarantulas. There were also scorpions, boa constrictors all waiting to harmonize with the world. Lugo will really enjoy his stay in my zoo of doom. I know it because I tested it out on Migrane)
2b – Ellen –Ellen is more than happy to hang out with Dustin Pedroia and just do nothing insane. She doesn’t want to paint the walls with lead or leave food out in the sun or set fire to gutters. She just wants to hang out with Jason Bay. That’s right. Helen doesn’t want to do anything crazy. She just wants to hang out with Sean Casey. No animal farms at all. She just wants to hang out with Jason Varitek. Yup no crazy ideas. She just wants to hang out with youk. No…no crazy inventions – just give her a night with Mike Lowell. That’s Ellen.
1B – cfarnham04 – When I was told I was going to help out Youk…it was exciting. This was easy. I decided the best way to help out Youk is to give him that ‘special’ room. I started with gorgeous aluminum foil walls to block out alien contact. Then I added a microwave blocker to protect against the UFO’s trying to contact me. Then I painted the floor with plutonium 238 to stop the dead from awaking. “ (enjoy your stay at the crazy house.”
C – Jody Foster – I’m so hooked on Jody right now that I’ll get back to you Gary when we’ve returned from Australia on our year long trek.
P – Garry – Garry is once again working for Manny Delcarman installing a new tile floor in his bedroom. “The old Italian hand made tile was fine but a jackhammer took care of that waste of money. I know baseball and I’m a lawyer so what’s the big deal about a tiled floor. For me it’s a new floor and it’s easy to do. Just repair whatever minor holes I created with the jackhammer with some plywood and nail them in place. (I used the 4 * 8 sheets and strung them together for the larger holes.) Next glue the tile to the floor. I used a hot glue gun but as the tiles cracked and I just used a wheelbarrow and a jack hammer to bust up the tiles for a collage. Once all the tiles was smashed up I mixed it with concrete and poured the floor. After seeing Manny’s face I did one final step in calling a professional tiller and begged but now it just looks great. BosoxBrian – I won’t be doing any traveling lately. I have a $10,000 tiling bill to pay off!”
P – Pangelotti – just decided to pitch today. No home improvement projects but when Dice-K said buff his car “I couldn’t resist. I had my 12,000 RPM Maika grinder and just attached my shirt to the grinding pad with hot glue. This works great if you realize one factor – have a 24 hour Maco paint shop nearby for an emergency paint job. “
P – Rayman – Rayman’s dream is to get Papelbon back on track and he started by doing something foolproof. Well he got his chance. He put in a nightlight. “After hearing the horror stories I decided to do something simple. Unfortunately the bulb burned out because I got a cheap one and Papelbon is now nursing a broken jaw from the fall. I just can’t do anything right.”
007chow! – I installed the ultimate burglar proof system in Tim Wakefield’s house. Any burglar who breaks in will get an ear piercing 50,000 db sound wave that’s sure to send the burglars to the ground. As I learned it also shatters windows, walls, explodes natural gas tanks as well as causing permanent hearing damage. Tim was pretty understanding guy though but I couldn’t hear a thing he was saying but if I didn’t know better I’d swear he was screaming at me but if that were true I would have heard it. Hey…does anyone know why it’s so quiet around here lately?”

BosoxBrian – P – Brian isn’t like the rest of us. He decided on something safe so he decided to just talk baseball to Big Papi…but when David cried on his shoulders he decided to do something nice to cheer him up “so I gave him a new wood floor. I ripped up all that priceless Japanese custom carpeting and put in a new wood floor. It was easier than I thought it would be. You just put the pieces together and glue them in place with liquid nails. The hard part is the corners but I just filled in the gaps with more caulk. I then painted the caulk with some leftover lead paint. I figured it wouldn’t be a problem. Then I left town right away when David decided that a baseball bat could be used for something more than hitting a baseball.
Bench Coach – RobertGKramer – “I don’t.know what’s happened to the team. Everyone is reporting some sort of home loss and is not showing up for the game. Stupid Boston contractors. Sounds like Rayman, Pangelotti, Gary, BoSoxBrian and others need to get together and fix these problems before it gets out of hand. “

Umpires – Julio Lugo will be playing after recovering from tiger attacks, snake bites and scorpion venum.

Ellen,
Sorry, I use a template to make the lineups to save time and forgot to delete that garbage text. I did it in the update.
Ellen — how bout this for the lineup for you.

Ellen — Ellen decided on painting Dustin’s house but didn’t like the green. Fortunately she repainted in brown but didn’t like the brown and repainted in faux yellow and dark yellow but didn’t like that so she painted in orange but hated that and then went to the doctor for a strained right arm from all the painting.

Dave,
It’s all good. What sucks is I might not have trotted out to first and you might not have noticed!!!!!!! It’s tough being the manager but someone has to do it….and you are the blog manager of the year!!!!

CF04,
If I were a betting man, I’d have to say somewhere buried in all of that Yankee Stadium concrete there is still a Red Sox jersey or other piece of paraphernalia. However, it will have a reverse influence than that intended!

007,
Thanks for the work on Brian Corey. He comes across as a really nice and determined person. Too bad he got dropped from the Padres. Granted, he’s still in the organization but not a good sign that he’s in AAA now.

Robert,
I guess I couldn’t integrate the XBOX joke but the next blog — featuring you guys training the Sox in your professions will easily include one. I just thought that up over the struggles I’m having helping my daughter in her math homework.

Must have been the *chicken soup* I gave to Sean that made him feel sooooo much better!!
Is that the official lineup??? Why is Kotsay at cleanup and not Petey??? Doesnt make sense to me to screw with a formula thats been working.. but then again what do I know?? I know what I know….. (get ready Dave here it comes)
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!!
LET’S GO REDSOX, LET’S GO!!!! CLAP CLAP CLAP!!!

Beckeet looks like he’s on his way back and fast.. I know we’ll only see him on a “limited basis” tonight, but none the less its Great to see him back and in good form!!
and Way to Go MIKEY>>> Blast off!!!

If everything goes well. Boston will be 3 games back in the loss column. T.B. is a little tight around the collar and Boston is playing very loose!! Beckett looking strong and I love it!!

I think Nolan Ryan will have open pitching tryouts at a local Walmart in the Dallas Forth Worth area tomm. I’m not sure of the time but Garry you should attend.

When was the last time Boston had back to back triples? I would say about 50 years ago. lol. Fast guys hit triples. Something Boston didn’t have much of back in the day. Lou Gorman’s famous quote–“What would we do with Willie McGee. LOL!! One of the dumbest things I have ever heard a g.m. say.

I would also put Montgomery, Alabama on that list as well. T.B. has a A.A. team there. I’m sure Maddon could threathen his team and say if you don’t win tomm. Your all going back to Montgomery, Al. LOL!!! I would gurantee a win!! lol.

Wow!!!! Great outing for Beckett. It wasn’t like he was pitching against a weak line-up either. These guys can hit. I think Tampa is feeling some pressure and toronto is still a decent club so it won’t get any easier for them. The Sox kept it close through all thos injuries and now they need to turn this slow rollong snowball in to a train!!!!!! Way to go Manny D….Go Sox!!!!

I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE

… Pedroia steps up to the plate.. The NESN camera pans the crowd.. The camera stays on a sign for Pedroia that reads….. “M.V. PEEEE WEEEE #15″ I think that is a great sign… and He’s even getting the MVP chant in Arlington!!!! HOW GREAT IS THAT???

When Papi hits a ball that coesnt make it out of the park, he looks like the balls that he hits that DO make it out….CRUSHED… I wish he’d hit his stride again.. If for nothing else than for him!! The smile is still there, its just not as big.

I wonder how Tito does it? It looks to me as if he views the entire season as a process. And he simultaneously tries to win every game and get his team ready to be playing the best baseball at the end of the season. By showing confidence in his guys and letting them work out the kinks in their game through the season, and resting them when they need it, he has come up with a formula for having his players’ skills honed and the players themselves rested for the end of the season. Some managers will let players languish on the bench or in the bullpen, then when they are needed they are not ready. But Tito never does that. Other managers go with their best until those guys are worn out. Tito doesn’t do that. He’s guided this Sox team through injuries and all kinds of problems and at the end he has them ready and playing their best. Hats off to Tito. 3 cheers. Ellen, you have a cheer for Tito? he deserves one.

Yeah Craig, say it ……. I’m the elder statesman of the Sox blog unless you count Kramer, who is my dad! LOL!

This is a good solid win for the Sox tonight. Beckett and Lowell return and both look healthy for the stretch drive. Manny D has a confidence building appearance and did exactly what he should have done…… throw strikes. Masterson and Oki not as dominating, bujt still got the job done.

This has been a pretty remarkable season for the Sox. A lot of people have contributed to getting the Sox to where they are. Bay and Kotsay have come in and had an immediate impact. Lowrie has been excellent filling in for Lugo and Youk and even Jeff Bailey has done a creditable job. Masterson came up and made some quality starts and then sort of brought the bullpen back together. Sean Casey has filled in well when he’s played and Coco has been a real team player when it would have been easy and maybe even justifiable for him to be otherwise. The difference between the Sox and Yankees this year is that the Sox role player and youngsters have performed, the Yankees have not.

The Rays are seeing some tough times and it’s not going to get any easier. They are really facing their first adversithy since the All Star break and after facing the tough Toronto pitching, they get to go to Boston and New York and go home to see the Sox again. It should be interesting to see if Joe Maddon can keep the young Rays together through all that, especially in they head to Boston with a one game lead.

Sorry Garry, I don’t think we can count your Daddy as the elder statesman of this blog. This whole blog is predicated on and functions as a Sox fan forum. Other fans are welcome but they are barred from holding “office”. I know it isn’t fair. Life is often unfair. That’s just the nature of the beast. So Kramer can be a welcome guest but he can’t be the elder statesman. That honor is yours and you wear it well, with dignity and grace. But you better take your vitamins, Gramps, cause I’m right behind you and if you falter I’ll pick up the elder statesman baton and pass you! LOL

Morrow lost the no-hitter in the 8th, but Putz saved the game. The question is no longer “can the Yankees catch the Sox”, the question is “can the Yankees keep ahead of the Jays.” I watch both the Jays-TB and the Mariner-NY games. These two teams are definitely going in different directions.

And what can you say about Mike Lowell? I said it last year, this guy is the heart and soul of the Red Sox. He’s the modern day equivalent of Tony C. I said it then and I’ll say it again–it was vitally important that the Red Sox resigned Lowell in the off-season, much more important than the possibility of picking up A-Rod.

Garry says we are the same age, so I guess that makes me the elder stateswoman, and only woman as far as I know…. unless one of you “guys” is holding out onme.. and hey you guys, thank you for treating me like ome pf the guys. Thats a roll I”m comfortable in!!

Good Night Nationers!! and I do mean GOOD NIGHT!!
let me ask you something for real… Are all of you really starting to BELIEVE?? God I hope so!! I really loved tonight!!
See you all tomorrow!!
and even though we have a hurricane baring down on us I will say (for my college football favorite) GO CANES!!!! IT’S ALL ABOUT THE “U”……

A big factor for RSN this year will be the rest that some of the veteran players have had this year because of injury. September was burn out time, particularly for Youkilis. Or at least it seemed to me!

Heads up for you Kramer, The Phillies/Mets game today has been postponed due to Tropical Storm Hanna. Good thing the Sox are on the road this weekend or we’d be postponed too.. That would be horrible given the momentum that has finally arrived.

Hey Trixie, here you can be one of the guys, but I’m sure I speak for all of us who believe you are a great lady for sure! And to answer your question, we all believe. Believing and hoping is what being a Sox fan is all about. There have been many disappointments, but disappointments don’t happen if you don’t believe and disappointments make success all that much sweeter.

I just glanced at the schedule and after Texas, we spend the next two weeks in the company of the two teams that have given us the most trouble, Tampa and Toronto. Twelve games in a row with those teams. That’s a tough stretch, but a great opportunity for the Sox to take care of business. The biggest series is the first against Tampa at home. A sweep there really puts the pressure on the Rays. Of course, we need to take care of business in Texas first. The Sox are playing at 2:35 PM local tomorrow in Texas. A day game in Texas is almost unheard of.

By the wey Trixie, you are just nine years behind me. I’ll be 58 in November. OK, well I gotta go get my three mile run in now! LOL! Right after I take a nap!

Garry, I’m 4 years and one month behind you. Still going strong! I think I can work for another dozen years, but then the long hours and standing all day will be too much. I’m not sure what I’ll do then. Sit on the porch, I guess.

Anyway, you have to wonder; the devilrays have played so well since the all-star break and yet they are only 2 1/2 games up. Shows how well the Sox have played to keep within striking distance. We all expected them(the devilrays), to fold and this is their chance. We’ll see what they are made of; can they dig deep and start winning all the time again, or will they lose their spirit and slip into 2nd place. This will be an exciting month for Sox fans and I am so glad for Theo, Tito and all the young guys and veterans who have contributed all year!!! Casey and the callups, Bay and the boys have done a remarkable job! Go Sox!

Ellen,
Yes, I saw the postponement of Mets/Phillies when I first booted up this morning. It’s raining heavily and blowing pretty good in southern NJ right now and this should reach Shea Stadium in about two hours. I didn’t see Tampa Bay at Toronto scheduled on MLBEI or I might be watching that!

There are no games shown before 7 due to the Fox Network Monopoly Game on Saturdays (They have exclusive rights to Baseball on Saturdays)… I guess since the Phils/Mets was the game of the week they’ll probably put Minn/Detroit on instead at 3:55

I say Pedroia for MVP. But we need to do something about our pitching if we’re going to make post season play. Dice WALK ‘EM K has only had a couple of good games this year. His win record is due to our top notch defense not his pitching ability. I miss Schilling
Victoria
Kid Nation Captain
red sox kidhttp://redsoxkid.mlblogs.com/

Zaun with a walkoff grand slam and the Jays win it in 13 innings. Once again the telecast stunk ( Staats & Migrane ) but the outcome was to my liking!! I am guessing Staats and Migrane are going too jump from the C.N. Tower in about 10 minutes. LOL!! A killer loss by T.B. today. T.B. is taken on some serious water!!

Previously, I suggested that the Sox would be in good shape if they took 5 of 6 from the O’s and the Rangers. At this point, that only amounts to going 1-1 against the Rangers. With that (and I think the Sox have a decent chance to sweep this series as well), they would be 26 games over .500, and would only need to go 12-8 over their last 20 games to reach 30 games over .500, for the year at 96-66, which I honestly believe gets them into the play-offs, what with the floundering the Yanks, the White Sox and the Twinkies are doing.

It’s phenomenal to see the return of both Mikey and Josh and how they performed to help the Sox win their first game back off the DL Friday night. I was also interested to hear that Carlos Quentin of the White Sox is likely done for the year. I think it makes it that much more likely that someone from the Sox will be a frontrunner for this award.

Also interesting to see the Rays starting to have some trouble winning in September, particularly away from home. Their next 7 games are all away, including 3 against the Sox and 3 against the Yanks, and they finish the season on the road. Let’s see if they can “finish off” what they started, especially after they lost this afternoon’s game, and are only 2 games ahead of the Sox in the loss column. Go Sox!!!!

I think the “new money” Devil rays are about to find out what September is all about. Hard fought wins against teams who are no longer in it but want to make a difference in the outcome of the final standings. If they forget how to put one away it would not bother me one bit. September baseball is a lot different because every game is huge and any 1 game can cause some bad memories and change the whole season. The DEVIL RAYS may have had one of those games today. I am hoping their Bucky Dent game is coming. Time for them to make some history like the Sox were doing prior to 2004.

The one thing common among most professional athletes is that they don’t like to lose. That’s why teams like the Rays and Sox can’t take the Jays and Rangers of the world for granted. They play for pride and some are playing for contracts and for jobs next year. While they aren’t in contention for post season play, it’s an important time of year for them.

I’m watching the LAD/ARZ game and Zazu is up with the bases loaded. He already has a 3-run dinger today. This kid Cruz is throwing him 98 mph fast balls, but can’t find the plate. A breaking pitch, then he blew a heater right by Zazu. Zazu hits a routine fly ball to right, lost in the sun, bounces on the warning track into the stands for a 2-run double. Zazu jogs down the line like he thought it was gone. What a *******!

Jays snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, after almost snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. That’s two days in a row that BJ Ryan has been ineffective. He just about blew the save yesterday, and he did blow the save today. Why doesn’t he pitch like that against the Red Sox?

Jays have to win the underachiever of the year award. This team has such good pitching and such good hitting and fielding. I just don’t understand why they’re not in the hunt this year. They look so good when they play the Yankees and Red Sox and Rays, and then they stink against everyone else. If you watched the game today, shoddy fielding by Inglett (yesterday too), stupid baserunning by Rolen…and they find a way to win anyway.

They should have gotten rid of John Gibbon much earlier than they did.

I really didn’t think the Jays were going to beat the Rays today — thought the Rays would go 2-1 for this series — that is the good news!

The bad news is that Rays have only these three games with Jays in Sept — while the SOX have 7 games, sandwiched around our 6 with the Rays.

So we really need to take advantage of this current Texas series, and sweep them — Jays are playing to well to expect to take 5 or 6 games out of our seven with them.

It would be a major bummer to take a 0.5 or 1.5 game lead on the Rays Mon-Wed and then immediately loose it to these very same Jays.

I still don’t think the Jays can catch us — too far behind, but they might — or they might catch the Rays first, that would be something — the SOX and Jays in the playoffs — who would you rather face? for me, its the Rays, Jays have had our number too many times.

Hey, maybe I’ll get in touch with my “Girlie Enthusiasm” side. I’ll put a rainbow bumper sticker on my pickup and…………….NOT! But I sure am HAPPY and ENTHUSIASTIC that the Sox are gaining ground in a hurry!! GO SOX!!! I DO BELIEVE!!!!!LOL

Okay… I’ve been sent to the showers…. (we had to take down my pool today… it broke and we were in the HOT HOT sun all day!!) so I can get ready for our game…. everybody run and hide, you know whats coming next!!!!
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!
WOOOOOOOOOO WOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
LET’S GO REDSOX. LET’S GO!!! CLAP CLAP CLAP!~

I’m with dgneubert. I wouldn’t want to go up against the Jays, they’re starting to peak. I think they may also have the best 1-2 punch with AJ Burnett and Doc Halladay, and their other starters (Marcum, Litsch) and bullpen are very good. They have alot of pop at the plate, and now that Wells and Rolen are back…if the Jays manage to squeak in to the playoffs by some freak of nature, they might be the team to watch.

Red Sox gotta beat these guys. They have, what, 6 games coming up with Toronto? They gotta at least split, maybe take 4. They totally sucked against Toronto at Fenway a couple weeks ago (got swept) but to their credit came back and took 2 of 3 against the Jays a week later at Rogers Centre. Hopefully that was the start of a trend.

I miss the days when a game against Toronto or TB was an automatic win. *sniff*

The Jays have great pitching for sure. And Vernon Wells looks like the 2nd coming of Jimmie Foxx when he hits vs Sox pitching. But the Sox will not take the Jays or the DEVIL RAYS lightly this month and they will be focused and ready when they play those guys.

The Sox took two of three on their last trip to Toronto. They’ll face the Jays with a little more confidence in their next encounter. The Sox just need to take care of business one game at a time.

It would be good for Wake to get a win tonight. He has really had some tough luck this year. He along with Lester has been the most consistent Sox starter. He could easily have five or six more wins this year.

Don’t forget that the Sox will be Healthy this time against the Jays. Also, the Sox don’t necessarily have to go more than 7-6 over those 13 games as long as they take care of business with the rest of the teams. 8-5 would be better. I truly think they’ll do better than that. The Sox are peaking now. They have talent to go up against anyone and they are playing well now. No reason to fear the Jays or devilrays.

What the hell is going on here?? Jeez…. This is like nothing I’ve seen in a very long time… I guess Wake needs his every 5th day crani-ectomy…… Pull your head out of your asp!!!! Calm Down damnit!!!! 1 out is what you need and then you need … well Terry did what Wake needed.. sorry Bubba, shower time. Its too late in the season to be pulling that! OKAY…. Time to regroup, get this next batter out and get back to work with the bats… Top of the order coming up? Go to it GUYS!!! Its a big lead that they have but its VERY EARLY!!!!!!!
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!
LET’S GO REDSOX, LET’S GO~@@!!!!!!

I’m surprised that it only took Tito as long as it ded to pull Wake… Shows that he’s serious.. usually, in past games, he’s let the pitcher go further to try (i guess) to get himself out of the jam. Nice pickoff (balk) by Smith.. Thats one the umpire crew has given us…

I totally disagree with Francona and putting Smith in. Pauley who is a groundball pitcher should have been summoned. From what I have seen from Smith, I am not impressed at all. He has gotten lit up!!!

I wonder what the most comments are on one thread? I am thinking we could break the record. lol. I assume Ian stayed home this weekend. He’ll probably have a new one tomm. and it will about the Pats. Just a hunch!!

Jenkins and Brown I knew had 20 wins but I couldn’t think of the other pitcher that did. I was guessing Burkett. I totally forgot about Helling. Only 3 20 game winners in the history of the franchise. It doesn’t seem too matter who the g.m. is they don’t know anything about pitching. I think Nolan Ryan will change that. He’ll try anyway.

Checking in………………uh oh. This doesn’t look good! Could this be a repeat of the Youkilis Field Goal game? Cmon Sox!!!!! You can beat these guys!! GO SOX!!!!!!!I DO BELIEVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zaun with the walk off grand slam. A great thing!! It looks bleek right now for Boston but they are going against Texas pitching. I am thinking I could get a hit off of those guys. Rangers pitching is just horrible. It always is year after year.

I think the record for posts is 320-something. When Ian was out of town. I remember that the website got so full it started to have troubles. I tried logging on and I ended up at bosoxbrians’ YOUTUBE site. Very weird!! I sure hope that doesn’t happen again!LOL

LOL!! How in the world would you remember the number of posts? Wow!! Quite impressed. It must have been a slow time in the kitchen. My youtube site is weird and that could be a compliment!! That is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. You will always be in my prayers.

Boston going deep into their pen. I wonder if we will see Mark Clear tonight?

Arggh — I deleted a posting earlier reminding about the 17 runs the Ranges scored on us when we beat them 19-17 — and with Wakefield pitching, ya never know. But I didn’t want to throw any negative mojo on the blog.

Then he goes and does it anyway — it so frustrating with him — every time you think he is finally going to find some consistency, sure enough he loses it — all I can say is that it is better now than in October — although I thought we really needed this game to take the division.

With 7 games up coming with the Jays — its going to be really tough to over take the Rays if we don’t do it by Wed — and then our seven games with the Jays start with three more with Rays (away) in between.

If we are not dead even with the Rays or ahead at that time (after our 3-Rays,4-Jays,3-Rays,3-Jays), we can forget it, cause the last 8 games the Rays have (after that) are four with Baltimore and four with Detroit, while we have 4 with Cleveland and 3 with the Yanks.

Wakefield doesn’t have much time to recover his next groove again either, not sure we can afford any more batting practice give aways in Sept.

My prayers usually don’t get answered. lol. Jenkins was a workhorse. I wonder what he thinks of these guys now? I am guessing he thinks they are a bunch of babies, pitch counts drives him nuts for sure.

I am sort of a negative optimist, LOL — I really think the Sox are going to pull it out (the division) somehow, but I don’t see how, and the math does not favor it at all — but I think they can do it… however.. I also think that tomorrow could very well be a repeat of tonight — although teams don’t usually score double-digit runs two nights in a road — but if Bryd is not on his game, with his velocity — the Rangers will be smoking the ball out of the park tomorrow night as well.

You are right Mr. Wizard, on both Jenkins and Gibson. I play golf with Dr. John Howard, who was one of my professors when I went to school after retiring from the Navy, who played with Fergie on the Globetrotters. That’s also how I got to play golf with Sam Jones.

However, there are several pitchers who have won 20 games for teams in both leagues. Among them are Randy Johsnon (Seattle/Arizona), Gaylord Perry (Cleve/SD/SF), David Cone (Mets/Yanks), Tommy John (Dodgers/Yanks), Jerry Koosman (Mets/Twins), Andy Messersmith (Angels/Dodgers), and Frank Viola (Twins/Mets). There are others, but they are way before you and me.

I’ve always thought that in blowout games like this, teams could raise a bit of money by allowing fans to suit up and go play. It might make things more interesting for fans, too, and they wouldn’t be nearly so depressed about their team getting the tar kicked out of them.

I mean, I’d pay a couple hundred bucks to sub for Mike Lowell for an inning or two. Give him a rest, add some interest to a laugher game, and make a few bucks to boot! And chances are the ball would never get hit to me anyway. So what would be the harm?

Thankfully, the torture has come to an end. No thanks to middle relief–the concept of “hold” eludes Mike Timlin yet again. If Timlin and Pauley were able to keep the Rangers from scoring repeatedly, the game would have been much closer. If you’re trailing the Rangers 9-4 with 6 innings to go, you have a chance to come back. Give up another 6 runs, and pretty much everyone calls it quits.

But let’s look at the bright side. Wake should be well-rested for his next start, after only 1.2 innings today.

Hey all,
I know I’ late on this but check this out. Fur years in a row look at these numbers by Wilbur Wood…..a left handed knuckle baller who pitched for the White Sox in the 70’s.

22-13, 24-17, 24-20, and 20-19. 20 wins and 20 losses in the same season!!!! Kind of glad I missed most of tonight’s game. I’ll be here for tomorrow’s no matter what so I hope it’s good. Go Sox….Go Jays.

Craig, Fergie didn’t play organized hockey that I know of, but he was from Canada.

Wilbur Wood wasn’t always a knuckleball pitcher. He pitched for the Red Sox before he developed the knuckleball. I don’t think he ever won a game for the Sox. Did you happen to notice the number of innings Wood pitched in some of those years? Several times he pitched both ends of a double header. He threw well over 300 innings for several years. Like Wakefield, and all good knuckle ball pitchers, he won about 55 percent of the time. His wins and losses are very similar to Wakefield’s.

Garry, (Thought I might have to wait for your answer….figured youwere “toes up” by now.)
I did notice the kind of innings he put up. Even hard throwers like Mickey Lolich, Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, Fergie Jenkins, Bob Gibson etc. seemed to pitch a lot of innings compared to today’s guys. Times change and maybe people are smarter, I can’t really say but those guys could pitch!!!!!! I’m thinking those guys from back then probably gutted their way through a start or two until their arms felt better over the course of a season because they rarely missed a start. True workhorses. Now a guy throws 200 innings and he’s an iron man!!!!! Let’s hope Byrd can give the Sox a strong 7 tomorrow.
– Craig

Craig, I got to thinking some more about Wilbur Wood. I couldn’t confirm it anywhere, but it seems to me he was referred to as “Baby Face” Wilbur Wood. He was signed right out of high school and spent very litle time in the minor leagues. He really looked like a little kid.

I pitched in the era of iron men. You’re right. Pitchers didn’t miss starts. You miss a start, you might lose your job and be “relegated” to the bullpen. Plain and simple, the bullpen in those days was primarily made up of pitchers not good enough to be starters. There weren’t many true relief pitchers because pitchers that couldn’t start didn’t hang around long. A good starting pitcher would complete well over 50 percent of the games he started. Being sore and tired was a way of life, but you were physically and mentallyh conditioned to pitch through it. By comparison, today’s pitchers are primadonnas who get paid millions for doing half the work.

I know what a horrible loss last night was and I figured that I would get blasted… Thanks for not double barrelling me. The only thing we can do as The Best FanBase in the World is keep on supporting the RedSox..
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!

All Byrd does is win and that is what I am looking for him to do today. It will interesting too see how the young Rays bounce back today. I think they had their toughest loss of the season yesterday. A crushing loss!!

Whooops! The record for posts—set on August 11th—is 348. I was a little off. Man, it’s a good thing I have a thick skin; all this being wrong would get me down!!LOL OK Brian, we’ve got work to do! Post away!!!!!!

Ellen, the Sox are playing in Texas, right? Then we need a big ol’ Texas barbecue!! We’ll start with a beef brisket smoked lightly then finished over hot charcoal, pork ribs slow cooked with my special spicy bbq sauce. Of course we need some chickens done over the pecan wood fire. Cole slaw, Texas chile beans and corn bread with Jack cheese and jalapenos. For you Ellen, and only for you, I’ll grill a filet of grouper and serve it with remoulade on a Texas size hard roll. Pecan pie. And Lone Star Beer!!!!!!!!! One keg for Brian and one for the rest of us! Yeeeehaaaw!!!

How did you look that up? That is the most impressive thing I have ever read on this blog. LOL!! All this being wrong is a great thing. Who wants too be right all the time? That would be so boring. lol.

We will shatter that record. Hands down!!

Rays are losing, no surprise there. I am expecting them to lose today. That loss they had yesterday was a hard one to swallow. I am quite surprised Staats and Migrane didn’t jump from the C.N. Tower after that game. Those two annoying soles are doing the game again today!!

You can order the Footjoy Contour Series for $139.95 or the Dry Joys series for $169.95 I ordered the Dry Joys because I liked the available color scheme better.

It might take a second to navigate your way though to get the colr scheme and logo set up the way you want but it’s not too bad once you get used to it. I ordered the “B” logo on one shoe and the World Series 07 logo on the other shoe. You can mix and match the logos as you seem fit which is cool. Check out the Oakland A’s shoe. It is pretty cool looking but I would not be caught dead in them!!!! Enjoy!!
– Craig

I was reading some of the posts yesterday, and I got a little worried… We had a post from a “Kids Nation” Captain… I thought we’d have to “refine our posts a little”.
But there is a Kids Nation blog so…..

This post is mostly PG except for a rant here and there. I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE. I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE.

I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE. I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVEI DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE, I DO BELIEVE

Sox better get some more runs. They will blow a great opportunity today because Tampa Bay lost AGAIN! This is a great opportunity to squeeze the side but Byrd is NOT a shutout pitcher. Sox need runs and they need them now or Lugo and Rosanne are going to do their hula dance.

Rays lose!! Rays lose again. T.B. goes into Boston with their head down!! This is setting up well for the Red Sox. The division is there’s if they want it. It will not be easy but IDOBELIEVE!!! IDOBELIEVE!! Oh yes I do.

Another Jays win. Imagine if they had Cito Gaston from the beginning of the year. The Jays would be battling for the division. Jays have been very tough on Bos. T.B. and N.Y. Sox have 7 games left against Tor. and those will be 7 difficult games.

Not only does Boston have a great chance to win the division they have a good shot for the best record in baseball. Did T.B. peak too early? Same I ask about L.A.A. Boston unloads Zazu and they haven’t missed a beat. No other team could even dream of doing that. Props to Francona and the vets on the Red Sox!! Not too mention all the injuries they have had. Injuries are always just an excuse.

Boston has owned T.B. at Fenway this year. 6-0 against the Rays at home. T.B. had a 7 game losing streak right before the All Star break. Alot different now for the young and inexperienced Rays. So few series left and the home games are dwindling for the Rays. T.B. has had an amazing season regardless. They have been great for baseball.

I’m still weary of T.B. They have good oitching and defense and you can take a lot of games that way. Hopefully seeing Boston come up behind them will put that added pressure to win on them. That is a variable you can’t really measure and works in the Sox’ favor right now.

Thanks Big Papi. It’s about time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! More for Byrd to work with.

All Paul Byrd does is keep his team in the game. I have more confidence when Byrd pitches than I do Dice-K. That might sound a tad strange but that is what I think. Dice-K given up those free passes drives me nuts!!

This is where T.B. needs a vet to take the team by the horns. They just don’t have that player. Either a vet in the lineup or a starting pitcher. There lack of inexperience is showing. Boston sees the bigger picture, not only the front office/coaching staff but the players as well. I’m not sure if T.B. does. Boston never panics!! Francona would never allow that too happen.

With Belichick in charge I doubt we’ll here anything too soon. He gives you nothing. You could probably get McCain’s/Obama’s cell # before we find out the status on Brady. Not that you would want their cell #. LOL!!

This kid McCarthy is all legs and arms. I don’t think he weighs anymore than 160 lbs. He was one of the White Sox top young arms but I guess they gave up on him. Danks for McCarthy, I think the White Sox got the better of the deal. Ron Washington is wearing out that grass in Arlington. He certainly gets alot of walking in. lol.

Every season is like a new lesson for me… like this season, I’ve really learned to read lips… What Brandon Mc Carthy just said wasn’t very nice.. someone go get the bar of ivory soap so I can wash his mouth out, lol!!!

bosoxbrian,
My pet peeve about Dice-K is not so much the walks but his staggering pitch count which leads to those walks. He can easily throw 40 pitches per inning without even trying. The man doesn’t know how to get hitters to ground out into outs. I know the staff was trying to give Dice-K a sinker just to get outs instead of strike outs. Strike outs take time and energy away from you where ground outs keep pitch counts low. Sounds like Dice-K never got the ground ball idea and still throws the 3 – 2 count.
After today the Sox will have to fight for every game. Every game will be a nail biter and the next three — I can’t even watch — too much tension. Between that and going to the dentist I can’t decide which will be worse for me.

I truly think that we got the better end of the Bay for Zazu deal… He has been nothing but good since he put this Uni on!!! And we wont have to spend 30 million next year to keep him!!! oh, and he doesn’t POUT!!

arnie
yes, i changed my name. The way Cito is managing our guys and with our pitching, I just don’t see a melt down. On the other hand we’ve now won 8 in a row and that isn’t going to last forever. lol

Our pitching and defense keeps us in all games and our short relief guys of League (1.93 era), Carleson (1.94 era) and Downs (1.19 era) has got to be the best in baseball. So if you’re gonna beat us, you’d better have it down before the 7th inning.
Ryan is still recovering from TJ surgury so he’s a bit up and down, but anyone of our short guys can close-like Carleson did today. The biggest change has been League who throws a 100 mph fastball that breaks 7 inches and a 90 mph slider breaking about 11 inches-almost unhittable.

Unfortunately we dumped Gibbons too late and we’re too far back, so I now cheer for the Sox-except when we play you guys.

You are right Brian. Belicheck is mum on that stuff. I still think you should check out the USC golf shoes!!!!! No I don’t want Obama’s cell phone….unless it’s Bin Laden’s. That way we could locate the SOB and take care of his butt.

I have been so impressed by Javier Lopez of late. With Okajima being so inconsistent this year, Lopez might turn out to be the lefty key out of the bullpen for the rest of the season. Like Mike Myers back in 2004.

Also pleased to see Hansack back on the roster. Perhaps he might get a start in Tim Wakefield’s next spot–This is the time of year that Wakefield typically runs out of gas.

Delcarmen has to develop and use his off-speed pitches a bit more, maybe a split-finger. He’s throwing 95% fastballs, and his fastball doesn’t seem to have the movement to get away with it. Hitters catch up, and next thing you know the ball is rattling around the park. Which then causes Delcarmen to spot his pitches–and with his control, he starts walking people.

Maybe it’s my imagination. He seems to be more successful when he doesn’t rely on the fastball so much.

The lineup is stretched for sure. That will make it very difficult for the opposing pitcher. The bottom of the order hasn’t done much all year. They started to produce against the Orioles in Baltimore ( couple of weeks ago) and have carried their own weight ever since. Which is great too see!! Boston heads home only 2 back in the loss column. I think they have the Rays right where they want them. Boston is the team too beat in the A.L. East not T.B. Also the have a shot at the best record in baseball.

WOOOOOOOOO WOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
IDO BELIEVE, IDO BELIEVE, IDO, IDO, IDO, IDO BELIEVE!!!!!
Hopefully this will be one of the most interesting weeks all season!! I’M SO PSYCHED!!!!!!
I said last week that this group of guys is finally starting to look and act like a TEAM!! Everybody doing their part and they are picking each other up.. (especially COCO who was picking up JBAY after their near mid-field collision today).. I will continue to believe (as I hope you all will) and we’re gonna have some FUN!!!

Did Tito just give Mikey and Kotsay the day off today?? Nothing’s wrong is there?? PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let nothing be wrong.. and YEAH Hey Ian…..You’re MIA, come out comeout where ever you are…. olly olly in come free!!

Arnie, you are the Chef o’The Blog.. I have to tell you that I am making an American Classic Dinner!! Meatloaf, ground chuck with sauteed miced onion and green bell pepper-fresh bread crumbs tomato sauce an egg and milk) Fresh green beans, snapped by my own two sweet hands, REAL mashed potatoes and home made biscuits (buttermilk) and gravy… Mmmm Mmmm Good!!

For you Pat fans on the blog, it must be horrible to see Brady hurt in the first quarter. (I am just a football fan, but I like baseball better.) I love our chances against TB this upcoming series. We are at the Fens, we have our 3 best pitchers going, and we are hot at the right time. This series could be fun…

That may shut down the whole blog — i hoping this is num 399 . I though, if I have spend the weekend with the Lugo’s I will take him to some lavish resort somewhere remote and keep him there until November — and I sure everyone on this blog will help me pay for it.

Ellen,
I’ll take one for the team because I have to let you all know that……just talked to a buddy of mine down at Macdill AFB in Tampa. He said….”We have nothing to worry about because we (T.B) are 8 ganes ahead of the Twins in the wild card. I laughed my butt off and said I hope TB is thinking the same way you are. Come on Sox!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

For the most part people don’t even care about the Rays. They’re more worried about the Bucs losing today and how far can Tebow and the Gators go. The t.v. ratings are up on Rays telecast ( Staats & Migrane aren’t the reason ) but I think most people that care are just happy they will make the playoffs.

Hey, I got busy and missed the “Countdown To 400 Sweepstakes”. So Ellen won the 399th and the 406th??? Well, she’s been on this blog from the very first—since Ian invented the internet— if you thought there was half a chance you’d be getting over on her, all I can say is: don’t be buying any Florida real estate from her! LOL You fellas never stood a chance! Me either!

Tito’s done it again______Sox are positioned to overtake the devilrays and maybe take the Best Record honors. GO SOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Who would have thought, going into these last two games, that Wakefield, who has been so solid all year, would get lit up like a pinball game in heat, and that Byrd would pitch 6 2/3 scoreless innings? I thought Byrd would give up a few runs. Baseball is truly a strange game.

Hey cfarnham: Thanks for the golf shoe information. BosoxBrian won’t admit, but I’ll bet he already has two pair of Trojan shoes, along with a pair for each of the teams from the SEC!

Hey BosoxBrian: I am sweating…but about Tom Brady and the boys…Fortunately, they come slowly out of the box and get an early bye. Even with a back-up quarter-back, they should be no worse than 5-2 when they face the Colts, and that’s presuming losses to the Chargers and the NY Bretts. When does Michael Vick get released from jail? (lol). I assume they will look at picking up someone…is Vinny T. on Social Security retirement yet? (lol) I saw where Daunte Culpepper announced his retirement…Do you think the Pats could coax him out of retirement to throw a few more passes to Randy Moss, and get one more shot at a Super Bowl? I think that has interesting possibilities!!

Not to toot my own horn…well yes, on second thought…tooting my own horn…remember I projected the Sox to win 5 of 6 from the O’s and the Rangers, and they won?…ding..ding..ding…5 of 6. Now, if they win at least 12 of the last 20 (and they have 14 of those games at home), they will finish 96-66, 30 games over .500. The way they are playing, and with getting many of their injuries behind them, I think they could well exceed winning 12 of the last 20. Here’s hoping they go through the next 13 games with the Rays and Blue Jays at least 8-5. If they can do that, its play-offs here they come, perhaps even AL East Champs!!!!

If they do get to the play-offs, which starting pitcher(s) don’t start? The way he’s playing, I’m not sure that you can sit Paul Byrd down.

Colon pitched a scoreless 7.2 innings (84 pitches) giving up 2 hits and 3 SOs for the losing Pawtucket. Colon is ready to return for Sunday’s double header against the surging Jays.
If the playoffs start today, I would make Byrd the 4th starter, no ifs and buts.

The Sox appear to be in an enviable position indeed trying to figure out who their starters will be if and when they enter the post season. They have plenty to choose from. Colon, when healthy is pretty effective. Wakefield hasn’t had a lot of luck with Texas over the years so I don’t hold that last start against him. He’s been solid all year so he’s allowed to have at least one bad start or two. If the pitching holds up next year, I would not mind seeing Colon becoming a set up man. At his age, it would cut down on his innings and chance of injury, and he has the stuff to be a set man….although this year he got hurt swinging a bat!!!!!!! Of course, not knowing what next year brings for pitching the Sox might need him to be a starter but I could see him setting up for Pappelbon. Guess we better get through this year first!!!!!!! I am hoping that Beckett’s last outing is an indication he is ready to finish strong. GO SOX!!!!!!

BTW……I think the Rays are thinking they are in via the division or wild card and that may take away from their focus how important it is to take the division…..the Sox want the division and are letting the wild card take care of itself. An if and when the Sox face the Angels……I ain’t afraid of them either. The Sox have had decent pitching, good defense and timely hitting at the right time of the year and I’m ready to watch some play-off baseball.

Baring a Mets like colossal collapse, the Sox are playoffs bound either as a wc or as a division champion which appeared so far and remote a week ago. The Sox potentially have three quality No. 4 starters in Wakefield, Byrd, and Colon. Personally I prefer Byrd. If Byrd has 4 run cushion, he will most likely win the game for you. Can’t say for certainty the same hold true for Wake and Colon. With addition of Wake, Colon to supplement Masterson, Lopez, Delcarman or Okajima, and Papalbon, the Sox bullpen will be formidable indeed.

I just heard that Pioli/Belichick just called Tom Ramsey, Tommy Hodson and Hugh Millen. lol.

U.S.C. looking good on Sat. night. What a great week it will be. Sox take over 1st place and Ohio State goes down in defeat. I will give U.S.C. and Ohio State alot of credit for playing that game. Most of these big time schools play a bunch of nobodies this time of year. Props to the Trojans and the Buckeyes!!

Funny indeed. No body would have predicted that the Jays could have swept away the Rays. I predicted that the Rays would win game 1, lost game 3, and game 2 is a toss up. Well it worked out in the Sox favor. Just hope that the Jays will stay hot for the Chisox series burying the Yanks deep into 4th place and then cool off by Friday playing the Red Sox. The Jays are currently riding on 8 game winning streak.

It wasn’t a total loss for you this past weekend. Sure the Yankees lost 2 out of 3 this weekend and almost got no hit. They fell to 4th place. 4th place New York Yankees has quite a ring to it I think. lol. The Phillies did take 2 out of 3 this past weekend against the Mets. Wagner too have surgery. That is going to be a great race!! Having Johan Santana could be the difference for the Mets in 2008. We shall see!! I am rooting for the Phillies just to let you know. I have always liked Jimy Williams. One of my favorite managers and seems like a nice guy as well.

Williams of course the bench coach of the Phillies now. What is the record for most comments on a blog associated with M.L.B.? Arnie???? Anyone??? Ian where are you????? Fishing with your kid again???? Great times for you.

I’ll bet there are a lot of Lions fans who wouldn’t mind if the Pats pressed Hugh Millen back into service for them, what do you think? (lol)

It’s interesting to see all of the response my comment about Paul Byrd got. I remember not thinking much of him the last couple of years when he was with Cleveburg, and then he won Game 4 in last year’s ALCS to put the Indians on the doorstep of the World Series, after he beat the Yanks to close that Series out.

I don’t want to get ahead of myself. In fact, I just subscribed to MLB Extra Innings to watch the remainder of the Sox regular season games on TV (I’m tired of watching them on my computer) and am eagerly awaiting the Sox play-offs run (I am also assuming no Mets-style collapse), but do you think the Sox pick up Byrd’s contract option for next year? He’ll be 38 in December, and has been making $7 Mil per year, so what do the Sox do with him?

If this year (and 2006) have demonstrated anything, its that you never have enough pitching. If anything in particular causes the Sox to best the Yankees, its that the Sox kept acquiring pitchers (like Bartolo Colon and Paul Byrd), when the Yanks decided to rely almost exclusively on their youth. Imagine where they’d be if Moose replicated the year that he had last year?

I can only imagine how much money the Yankees will be spending this Winter to prop up their starting rotation. It will be interesting to see if they make a continuing commitment to Carl Pavano based on his last couple of starts (disregarding his lack of performance for most of his time with them), and what they decide to do to replace Pettite if he retires or the Moose if he decides to hang it up. I know how high they are on Joba, Hughes and Kennedy, but to date, they have gotten only minimal performance from them. With the Sox, they had gotten enough performance from Jon L. to believe he would perform as he has this year, and with Buchholz, the Sox relied on him as the Yanks relied on Kennedy, both to their respective detriments. So not only will the play-offs be interesting, but the subsequent “hot stove” season will be as well.

One final query: Do my fellow bloggers feel the Sox will show substantial interest in any of the premiere starters who will be available over the Winter, most notably, CC Sabathia?

Brian,
You’re right; the weekend was not a total waste. The Yankee results were predictable since we always do poorly against first time starters. But, the Phillies taking two of three from the Mets and the minor league victories were pleasant. And it’s nice to see the Rays struggle, hope it continues for at least three more games!

DB,
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Yanks exercise their option on Pavano, $10 million is not all that much anymore. With all of the pitching problems this year and last it may be prudent to line up 15 to 20 starters for next year!!!

Dbejamion: $7M is a bargain for a no.5 starter. I’d would pick up the option.
Robert: Plus your MiLB teams beat both Pawtucket and Portland. It is a shame that the Yankees have to resort to watching the minor league playoffs and learning how the game should be played. lol

Matt Millen is in the front office of the Lions. Who can forget the time he grabbed Pat Sullivan after the Pats playoff win in L.A. Hugh Millen I believe is a talk show host in Seattle.

I wouldn’t mind seeing the Sox pick up Byrd’s option. All Byrd does is give you 6 innings or more each time out. Then again do you really want 2 older starters in your rotation?Wakefield and Byrd. I think Boston will look into A.J. Burnett, they were interested in him last time he was a free agent. Burnett a former teammate of Beckett in Fl. when Henry was the owner. Of course that is next year, I’ll talk about that stuff in the winter. Right now it is all about defending the crown and passing the Rays and possibly ending up with the best record in baseball. Fenway as we all know is the biggest home field advantage in baseball. Look no further than last October. They lost only 1 game.

I think Theo/front office will kick the tires on Sabathia but I don’t see them given him the big $$$$ he is looking for. A major mistake if they gave him the long term deal he is looking for. No mention of Matt Holliday? Why is that? Things that make me go hmmmmmmmm. lol. Even I can figure that one out now. I think. LOL!!!

Pavano is pitching well because there is no pressure. The Yankees would be nuts if they had him back next year. I hope they do. I would love it. I think Cashman is smarter than that but I am not too sure about Hank and Hal. lol.

Robert:
To me IPK is a joke and Hughes is injury prone. Even Joba is unproven until he has pitched an entire season like Lester did. Joba has potential to be an ace but not until then, not to mention his arm ……

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